S. Korea holds Seoul Defense Dialogue 2019, which runs through Friday

The opening ceremony for the annual Seoul Defense Dialogue was held today.The dialogue brings together delegates and experts to discuss the challenges and dynamics of the Korean Peninsula and the surrounding region.Kim Ji-yeon has more."Building Peace Together: Challenges and Visions"... that's the theme for this year's multi-national security dialogue platform, the Seoul Defense Dialogue.Aimed at facilitating discussions on situations on the Korean Peninsula and the surrounding region, as well as peacekeeping operations and cybersecurity... the eighth vice-ministerial event held its opening ceremony in Seoul on Thursday.It serves as a platform to bring together hundreds of officials and experts from around 50 countries and two international organizations.In his keynote address, Seoul's Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo highlighted the achievements of the Comprehensive Military Agreement, signed almost 12 months ago, in alleviating inter-Korean tensions.This, despite the series of launches of short-range ballistic missiles by North Korea.He highlighted efforts to build mutual trust in the region through dialogue while also saying South Korea's security strategy lies in achieving peace by building strong military strength and defense capabilities."After the inter-Korean military agreement, during the past year, military guard posts have been removed from the inter-Korean border on a trial basis... while the disarmament of security guards at the Joint Security Area in Panmunjeom has been completed. Also up until now, some 15-hundred Korean War remains have been excavated in the DMZ."He also highlighted the efforts to build mutual trust in the region through dialogue... and raised security concerns, saying that neighboring countries near the peninsula... presumably Japan... are trying to trigger tensions.During the first plenary session on the "Peace Process on the Korean Peninsula and International Cooperation"... Vice Defense Minister Park Jae-min... echoed Jeong's remarks... underscoring the government's efforts to maintain the momentum of dialogue for denuclearization.Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News.